Gaming devices such as casino gaming devices, e.g. slot machines, have been popular for over a century. Initially such devices were mechanical devices presenting one or more mechanical spinning reels to randomly select and display winning or losing outcomes at a single pay line. Modernly such devices are computer controlled and some include video displays, electro-mechanical stepper controlled physical reels or combinations thereof. Typically these devices display game features of a base game and perhaps one or more bonus or secondary games. For example, for a video device, the game may present a base game depicting video images of five reels each with three display positions, i.e. coordinates producing a 3×5 matrix of positions for symbols. One or more pay lines are provided. Under control of the computer processor the video display depicts the reels spinning and stopping to arrange the game symbols in the matrix and where a predetermined winning combination of symbols is obtained on a wagered upon (i.e. enabled) pay line or pay arrangement the player receives a prize. Of course the foregoing description should not be deemed to be limiting since awards may be issued for symbols scatted in the matrix, i.e. a “scatter pay” and some symbols may trigger additional features such as a secondary game.
In the prior art casino device games the secondary game may include free spins of the base game, alteration of the base game for a number of spins, e.g. making one or more symbols wild or altering the symbol sets for the reels, a game where a player makes selections to reveal one or more prizes or otherwise interacts with a game feature to produce, or try to produce, an additional award.
A drawback of these prior art gaming devices is that the game graphical images at the game video game display are two dimensional. Recently software-based graphics engines have been produced which can produce a 3D effect at an auto-stereo electronic display such as an LCD, plasma, OLED or other electronic display. One type of auto-stereo display uses lenticular or shuttering technology in combination with generation of different views for each of the left and right eye as described, for example, in Rhodes, U.S. Pat. No. 7,697,751 filed Dec. 29, 2005 and titled “Use of Ray Tracking For Generating Images For Auto-Stereo Displays”, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference. Auto-stereo displays are believed to be currently commercially available from Vortex Immersion Media, Inc., of Las Vegas, Nev.
At http://johnnylee.net/projects/wii/there is shown and proposed a conversion of a Nintendo Wii® device to provide a virtual reality effect by reversing the infrared sensor bar to the player's head (for head tracking) and the control wand to the display. Movement of the sensor bar detects movement of the player's head relative to the display and display software renders the images accordingly to produce a 3D, virtual reality, effect. Seeing Machines Inc. of Acton, Mass. at http://www.seeinomachines.com has also proposed using their head tracking software (face API) in lieu of the infrared sensors of the Wii® arrangement to provide the same effect. This technology demonstrates that using head tracking to detect head motion and rending graphics according to the determined motion parallax such that 3D, virtual reality displays can be created without using the auto-stereo techniques of “lensing” or shuttering.
It would be advantageous to incorporate the features of such technology into a gaming device. It would further be advantageous to selectively activate such features to enhance the play of the game. It would be advantageous to activate such features in connection with a bonus or feature game to increase the entertainment value of the game. It would be advantageous to activate such features relative to portions of a game or bonus display such as one or more game symbols, pay line markers, bonus game images or the like. The activation may be coordinated to the desired effect such as related to winning symbol combinations, jackpot symbols, scatter symbols or other symbols which the game designer wishes to highlight. The effect may be pronounced for some symbols and lessened for others as desired. For example, a symbol may be subject to the effect such that it appears to “extrude” or extend from a virtual reel strip.
It would be advantageous to apply a default condition to the gaming device when no player is present, i.e. the controlling electronics assumes a default head position to avoid “searching” for a non-existent player. When a player sits at the gaming machine and their head position is detected there is a lag in producing the desired effects from the default condition to the real-time position of the player's head which may introduce an unpleasant or distracting jarring or jerking effect to the 3D feature. If a player turns their head, bends over or otherwise temporarily moves their head from the target acquisition zone, similarly there is a lag until the system catches up to the movement again likely introducing a jerking effect. It would be advantageous in this regard to provide, under certain conditions, a “smoothing” of the effect to reduce the effects which may be introduced by the first acquisition of a player's face from a default condition and where the player moves their head.
It has been known to provide gaming machines with touch screen or touch sensitive displays. As is known these displays can be of various types; resistive, surface acoustic, capacitive, surface capacitance, projected capacitance or any other type. Using such a display a player can interface with the gaming device (and system) by touching appropriate areas of the display. During the play of a game the player may have to make selections such as picking cards, making wager selections or selecting between displayed icons.
It would be advantageous to provide a game where one or more features are displayed with the aforementioned 3D virtual reality effect coordinated with reconfiguration of the touch screen display to permit the player to enter prompts such as selects based upon the images rendered to the player. That is, as the images are altered by motion parallax, additional touch screen prompts can be revealed and proved to the player.
It would be advantageous to provide a game where, by movement of the player's head the player can “zoom” in on the image. For example, if a player had poor eyesight it would be advantageous for the player to simply lean toward the display to zoom in on the selected scene.
There is also a need to provide a system, apparatus and method which enables a player to enter prompts and make selections based upon sensed gestures such as movement of the head, hands or arms and which can combine this functionality with providing the aforementioned 3D effects.
There is also a need to provide a community gaming experience which incorporates the virtual reality technology.